February 19, 1999

EVANSTON, Ill. - Head women's basketball coach Don Perrelli recorded his 250th career victory at Northwestern as his Wildcats defeated Indiana, 79-68, at Welsh-Ryan Arena. In his 15th and final season at NU, Perrelli brings a 250-179 record (.583) into Sunday's final regular season home game against No. 2 Purdue. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. CST.

Northwestern (11-14, 5-10 Big Ten) led 41-39 at halftime. Senior guard Shannon McGarrigle (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) capped off a 20-10 NU run with her second three pointer at the 8:51 mark of the second half which gave the Wildcats a 66-56 advantage.

Senior guard Megan Chawansky (Avon Lake, Ohio/Avon Lake) led all scorers with 18 points, including 12 in the first half. She also collected 10 rebounds for her third double-double of the season and 11th of her career.

Sophomore center Tami Sears (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) was two assists shy of recording just the second triple-double in school history. She had 15 points, 14 rebounds and a career-high eight assists. It marked her team-leading sixth double-double of the season.

Also contributing for the Wildcats was sophomore point guard Dana Leonard (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) with 17 points and seven assists. Junior forward Leslie Schock (Elgin, Ill./Elgin) reached double figures for the 20th time this season with 16 points.

Indiana (13-16, 2-13 Big Ten) had three players finish in double-digit scoring. Forward Cindy Kerns had 15 points and eight rebounds, forward Dani Thrush scored 13 points and guard Heather Cassady ended up with 10 points.

Northwestern hosts Big Ten champion Purdue on Sunday in the regular season finale for both teams. The Boilers ride a 22-game winning streak into Evanston. They improved to 24-1, 15-0 in the Big Ten after a thrilling 63-61 victory at Minnesota Friday night.

The Wildcats will honor their three seniors, Megan Chawansky, Shannon McGarrigle and Anne Giblin prior to tipoff.